Egypt

Just an aside. Chris learning to walk like an Egyptian.

One of our few pictures of the Nile. This was taken at Cairo.

Pick the Sphinx!

Pick Mohammed. The taxi driver for our trip to Saqqara and Drew exchange hats.

Chris loved this photo of the sheep going into a house in the back streets of Alexandria.

Just to prove we've been there! One of the 3 great pyramids of Giza and it's Sphinx.

Yahoo, an upgrade from Delhi to London, 5 hours in London airport where they took our unopened bottled water we got from the aeroplane - poobah then a drunken flight to Cairo. There was a man in the backseat moaning and screaming so security came and got him in a headlock. I did not know whether to be scared or feel very sorry for him. I think he was being deported. At Cairo airport Drew and his Egyptian drinking buddy had their passports taken off them while I was ushered through. I and assume Drew had an anxious 5 minutes before they let them through. I left my reading glasses in the taxi in my exhausted state, never to be seen again.

We had a free day in Cairo before the tour started (to sleep, change money and get our bearings in a new city). Police everywhere - this, apparently was normal.The tour leader 25 year old Aussy Amanda was fantastic and the rest of our group of 9 happy campers went off to the Giza pyramids and the Cairo museum, then an overnight seater train to Aswan where it was my turn for Cairo belly which made it a very yucky night and next day for me.Meanwhile Drew went on a felluca ride down the nile while I stayed in my cabin. When I emerged the boat staff were great. 4 nights and 3 days on the cruise ship on the Nile I will never forget, it was fantastic, even better than I hoped for. We visited lots of historical sites, road donkeys , I was petrified for the first 15 minutes and Drew cound not get on so they threw him over the donkey like a sack of potatoes and somehow swivelled him so his legs were apart. There he spent an agonising 1 hour jiggling on the donkey. I belly laughed all the way to the valley of the kings. We saw the usual sights in Aswan and Edfu , Luxor where we went on an early morning hot air balloon ride and took a horse and cart ride to Karnak temple. The next day we went to the Valley of the workers - everybody back then was mummyfied (after death of course).

We joined the bus convoy from Luxor to Hurghada, a Red Seaside resort town - not that we had any choice. Tourists are not aloud to travel in between those 2 destinations unless in convoy due to the terrorist attacks previously made on tourists. Snorkelled in the Red sea and relaxed by the sea for 2 days, then another bus convoy back to Cairo.

Now we are on our own in Cairo for 4 days. The first day was spent with our buddies Caroline and Sandy. We bargained the taxi ride from 20 Egyptian pounds to 10 and then Drew had such fun with the taxi driver that he paid 20 anyway. Our buds teased Drew but he was very happy. We saw another mosque, the old city and a great market and walked our feet off. We went back to the Cairo museum and braved the metro on our own - what brave vegemites we are.

The second last day in Egypt was spent in Alexandria. We caught the metro (underground) then a country train there and back. Shelley would be proud of us - All the way there and back and did not get lost once. We saw lots of stuff - Monuments and forts and mosques and Roman ruins and ended the day with a fantastic fish dinner. This may sound very boring to you guys but the fish was very exciting to us.

The last day was spent going by taxi back to Giza pyramids and also visiting Saqqarah pyramids and the Memphis museum, then catching up on the internet - thus this blog, and generally mucking around.

Egyptian people , in our experience, are very friendly and helpful. They speak quite alot of English and drive like madmen. Egpyt gets a big tick from us.

Drew being checked for explosives at the entrance to the mosque.

An amzing tree in the gardens of the red fort.

DELHI AND FAREWELL INDIA, SCOTT AND SHELL

Delhi was like Mumbai in many ways, about 13 million people, very busy and the usual hassles in the streets from street vendors, taxi drivers and beggars.

On our last night together, we all took an auto rickshaw to a local dance presentation. Much of it was awesome. Beautiful costumes and intricate dances with great variety with the highlight being a dance by one oriental guy balancing a juggling a large bone shaped stick with 1 or 2 large chopsticks, while dancing and staying in rhythm to the drummer. Another rickshaw took us to a posh (very unusual for us) rooftop revolving restaurant. Amazing views, a few drinks, and great food for a very expensive $75 total ahd Scott feeling all at sea after living on about $200-250 per week for most of their time travelling in India.

Chris and I hired a taxi for 4 hours the next morning (for $1.50) and visited an enormous mosque and the red fort (also enormous compared to other forts we had visited) with beautiful gardens but less exciting architecture than the others.

After a few drinks and completing a few more games of 500 (the result of which I am unable to divulge for reasons of modesty) we said our very sad farewells to Scott and Shell as they took the train to Varinassi before crossing the border to Nepal.

Tomorrow we take the somewhat indirect route to Cairo via London. It will be a very, very long day.

Some local kids who were excited to meet Chris, Scott and Shell on their walk.

AGRA AND THE TAJ MAHAL

Finally I succumbed to the anticipated bout of Delhi belly spending a memorable evening closing examining the local plumbing from every conceivable angle. Next morning, while Chris, Scott and Shell enjoyed a a 6km trek through Agra to visit the mini Taj, I waited for a repeat bout which fortunately never eventuated.

The next day we all visited the Taj Mahal and were not disappointed in the size, majesty or beauty of this, the world's large erection by one man for one woman.

Our anticipated 5 hour journey starting at about 2pm to Delhi was our worst experience with the inefficiency of India rail. Apparently, the rail department tries to compensate for being 2 hours late in departing by being 2 hours slow in travelling the 180km to delhi. Had the auto rickshaws not been quite so terrifying or uncomfortable they may have been a better alternative for this journey.

4 DAYS TO RELAX IN LOVELY PUSHKAR

After taking the train to Jodphur, while waiting about 3 hours for a bus we were lucky to witness a lunar eclipse. Finally we made it to Ajmer and another short bus ride saw us arriving in beautiful Pushkar.

The town is very touristy and set around the banks of a small beautiful lake. Most of the shore of the lake is occupied by Hindu temples.

We lazed around most of the time, but we did hire a couple of mopeds and had alot of fun riding around town and the surrounding country looking for some temples, but not finding any.

Climbing up the small mountain to another temple rewarded us with some magnificent views back over Pushkar.

OVERNIGHT TRAIN TO JAISELMER

We were very lucky to find that we could still stay inside the fort here. The problems of deterioration in the building caused largely by the problems of plumbing and water erosion mean the fort may not be able to accommodate tourists much longer.

The fort looked like a beach sandcastle from a distance but must look like a mirage to the local tribesmen.



The view from our $5 room was OK!!!!!!!!!
Making Roti or Chappatti or some other form of Indian bread.
Shelley, Thomas (a German tourist we met here) and Raju (rooftop restaurant owner)

Chris, Thomas and some locals before the camel safari.

Chris has been coloured by the local children as part of a Holy (Holly) celebration.

We all copped agood colouring, specially Scott and Shell.

After the camel safari we're sitting on the sand dunes watching the sunset commenting on the one thing that's lacking - a cold beer, when a local boy walks up with a sack of 4 kingfisher beers, 8& proof, so you don't need too many. The wonders of India will never cease.

LONG OVERNIGHT TRAIN TRIP TO JODPHUR AND THE BLUE FORT CITY

The last overnight train trip was a breeze. This time we had the usual sleeping area designed to accommodate 8, in 2 triple decker bunks and a double decker. At times we had up to 16 people trying to sleep in this very confined area. Just add all the luggage and you have a pretty cramped space. Trying to chat to the locals was fun but difficult. They all wanted to talk about cricket and the world cup. This was to go on in every place we visited.

Jodphur was a very beautiful city (photos to come). The audio guided fort tour was exceptional.

The current Maharaja (now an honorary title only) stated that he always loved to come home to his palace in the fort. Gazing out from the top of the fort we could understand why. (Although the plumbing is somewhat antequated.)

Chris and Shelley in the outdoor section of the Zenana (womens area occupied by Maharaja's wives, concubines etc) protected by armed guards (sometimes eunechs) at Jodhpur fort.

The jeep tour from Jodhpur included a visit to the local opium den. Almost tasteless (so I'm told)
The local potters wre amazing and hardly tried to sell us anything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The rug and carpet weavers were a friendly bunch and surprisingly the business had been in the family for several generations. No problems with choosing a career path here.

OVERNIGHT TRAIN TO JAILGON AND THE AJUNTA CAVES

Our first experience of an overnight train trip was from Mumbai to Jailgon. We paid about $5 each for an overnight train journey and a bed in a 2nd class sleeper. What a way to experience Indian train travel. I hate to think what the conditions were like in the area without sleepers.

Jailgon was a much more sedate town, after the chaos of Mumbai. We took a bus trip to the Ajunta caves and were amazed by the work the Buddhist monks had done over hundreds of years in carving these temples out of the face of a long rock cliff. Beautiful, intricate carving.

INDIA - ARRIVING IN MUMBAI- THE ADVENTURE BEGINS

Arriving in Mumbai was like landing on a different planet. We met a girl on the plane and shared the exhilaration of a taxi ride to Colaba district. Scott and Shell were waiting for us at the "hotel" and were a sight fore sore eyes.

Mumbai overwhelmed us with the noise, smells, poverty and the incessant requests to buy or give to beggars. We did enjoy the boat ride to Elephant Island where we wandered through the temple caves built over 500 years ago by the Hindus.

I found that I could buy prescription glasses with transitional lens for just $40 a pair, so investeed $80 and figured the savings would almost pay for 3 weeks in India.




Scott and Shell with one of the Hindu gods in the Elephant Island temples

SYDNEY - USA visas and customs

First port of call was Sydney and catching up with our old mate (no offence intended) Keith.

After tackling the US embassy, where we were shuffled from one counter to another and being kept waiting about 2 hours we left, with high hopes that our visas would arrive in Mentone on time.

Dinner gave us an opportunity to catch up with Keith's friend Peter French and family. Interesting dinner conversation revolved around French's fetish for female pubic hair and the trouble he has at US customs when he brings several thousand samples into their country. It would be interesting to be a fly on the wall when he invites the customs officers to examine, smell and even taste his collection. But, he tells them, they may not xray the hairs. Why, you might ask? It's because French is using them to determine if his company can diagnose breast cancer from examining female hair samples, but because the samples cannot have been treated or dyed in any way, the hairs from the heads of the female patients cannot be used.




MELBOURNE- FAMILY AND FRIENDS

In Melbourne we took the opportunity to spend some time with family and friends and celebrated Chris's 50th yet again, together with our 30th anniversary.